Essential Fintech Reading: March 7 - 13

On Monday, Apple announced more details about the Apple Watch (and perhaps persuaded some people to start saving for a down payment). Citi, Fidelity, and Mint are the first financial service companies set to release apps specifically designed for the watch, as detailed by Finextra. Users can check their balances with Citi, see the latest stock news with Fidelity, and track their spending with Mint. We suspect that other companies may quickly follow as they see how the Apple Watch performs in the market and as they feel the pressure to compete for user engagement.

Another great article this week from Finextra, "Does PFM Generate ROI?," pulls data from a host of financial institutions and analyst groups to demonstrate that personal financial management solutions are a worthwhile investment. The data highlights that PFM brings these key benefits:

Increased customer satisfaction

Improved customer loyalty and retention

Direct revenue generation and cross selling opportunities

The article is a great resource for financial institutions on the fence about PFM.

You can see from data like this why a report this week from the Economist Intelligence Unit and Tenemos found that digital banking has now surpassed regulation as the highest single priority for financial institutions. The amazing thing here is that just last year digital banking was the fourth highest priority, and now 46 percent of financial institutions say that it's their "highest priority for the next five years." That's an enormous shift, and bankers obviously need to be ready for what it entails: More competition on the digital front.